Sunday, 29 March 2009

Geothermal Heats Up At The Geysers

The Geysers, comprising 30 square miles along the Sonoma and Lake County border, is the largest complex of geothermal power plants in the world. Calpine, the largest geothermal power producer in the U.S., owns and operates 15 power plants at The Geysers with a net generating capacity of about 725 megawatts of electricity - enough to power 725,000 homes, or a city the size of San Francisco.

The Geysers meets the typical power needs of Sonoma, Lake, and Mendocino counties, as well a portion of the power needs of Marin and Napa counties. In fact, The Geysers satisfies nearly 60 percent of the average electricity demand in the North Coast region from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border. The Geysers is one of the most reliable energy sources in California delivering extremely high availability and on-line performance and accounts for one-fourth of the green power produced in California.

Children can have their faces painted, pan for gems, do a scavenger hunt or enter a recycled art contest. Electric and hybrid cars as well as a solar oven will also be on display!

Reservations are required for the plant tour bus tour. Please call 987-4270 with any questions or to reserve a seat on the bus.

News and Special Features

Watch the KQED Quest story, "Geothermal Heats Up."

In the Mayacamas Mountains, located 72 miles north of San Francisco, naturally occurring steam field reservoirs below the earth's surface are being harnessed by Calpine to make clean, green, renewable energy for homes and businesses across Northern California.